Malev Hungarian Airlines (MA) : Find Malev Hungarian Airlines Flights and Deals – CheapOair Sample Deals from * All fares below were last found on: . Fares are round trip. Fares incl. all fuel surcharges, our service fees and taxes . Displayed fares are based on historical data, are subject to change and cannot be guaranteed at the time of booking. See all booking terms and conditions To Depart Return Sample Fares* Call 1-855-437-2161 for deals too good to be published.Call 1-855-437-2161 for deals too good to be published. Malev Hungarian Airlines Alternatives with CheapOair After almost seven decades of continuous operation, Malev Airlines (MA), the national airline of Hungary ceased its operation on February 3, 2012. Malev Airlines was based in Budapest, Hungary and flew to 50 cities in 34 countries. Warsaw, Moscow, Istanbul, Kiev, Brussels, Helsinki, Athens, Rome, London, Cairo, Beirut, Toronto, and New York were some of the destinations served by Malev Airlines.

Though Malev Airlines has ceased its operation you can fly to similar routes with Lot Polish Airlines and Iberia Airlines . Founded in 1946, Malev Airlines had a fleet of 22 airplanes, which includes Boeing 737-600, Boeing 737-700, Boeing 737-800 and Bombardier Dash 8 Q400. Malev Airlines was also a member of the Oneworld alliance, one of the largest global airline alliances. Get there on time, every time! Check your flight status here. Learn and talk about Malév Hungarian Airlines, 1946 establishments in Hungary, Airlines disestablished in 2012, Airlines established in 1946, Association of European Airlines members MALÉV Ltd. [1] ( Hungarian : Malév Zrt. ), which did business as MALÉV Hungarian Airlines ( Hungarian : Magyar Légiközlekedési Vállalat, abbreviated MALÉV, pronounced [ˈmɒleːv] ), was the flag carrier and principal airline of Hungary from 1946 to 2012.

It had its head office in Budapest , with its main operations at Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport . From there, the airline flew to 50 cities in 34 countries with a fleet of 22 aircraft. Malév joined the Oneworld alliance on 29 March 2007. [2] On 3 February 2012, Malév stopped flying [3] and on 14 February 2012 was declared insolvent and ordered liquidated by the Metropolitan Court of Budapest. Contents Beginnings[ edit ] Hungarian civil aviation was pioneered by airlines such as Aero Rt. (founded 1910), Magyar Æeroforgalmi Rt. (Maefort) and Magyar Légiforgalmi Rt. ( MALÉRT (mɒleːrt) ). The widespread devastation of World War II forced these airlines to suspend airline service in 1940-44, and they were ultimately replaced by Maszovlet as the national airline after the war.

Maszovlet was founded on 29 March 1946, as the Hungarian-Soviet Civil Air Transport Joint Stock Company (Magyar-Szovjet Polgári Légiforgalmi Rt. also known as MASZOVLET). A merge between Malert, Maefort and the Hungarian part of Aeroflot. The initial fleet consisted of 21-seat Li-2 passenger aircraft (the Soviet-licensed DC-3 ) and 3-seat Po-2 "taxis", used for precision air mail : sacks of mail were dropped from the aircraft when flying over its destination. In 1950, Malév's operating base moved from Budaörs to the newly opened airport at Ferihegy , where it remained. On 25 November 1954, Hungary acquired all the Soviet shares of MASZOVLET, and renamed the company, MALÉV was born. Ilyushin Il-14 twin piston-engined transport aircraft were acquired in the late 1950s.

Operations were expanded, with flights extending to nearby countries and, following the 1965 acquisition of Ilyushin Il-18 turbine propellor airliners, and the subsequent 1968 purchase of jet-powered Tupolev Tu-134s from the Soviet Union , across Europe and the Middle East. Even before the political changes of 1989 and the arrival of democracy, Malév had begun phasing out its Soviet-era planes with the introduction of the airline's first Western -designed aircraft, a Boeing 737-200 on 18 November 1988. [4] [5] With that, Malév was one of the first airlines in the then-communist countries of Central Europe to operate a Western-built aircraft. TAROM Tarom(Romanian Airlines) started operating BAC 1-11 in 1968 and Boeing 707 in 1974. ( LOT - Polish Airlines was the second with its Boeing 767-300 aircraft launched in April 1989. [6] ).

The company's logo which turned out to be the last one, was designed by graphic designer László Zsótér ( DLA ) in 1986 and consecutively adopted during the following years. [7] 1990s-2007: Modernisation[ edit ] The last Soviet-built Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft was withdrawn from service in 2001. In 2003, MALÉV began replacing its Boeing 737 Classic aircraft with 737 Next-Generation planes. It then ran a fleet of 18 Boeing 737 Next Generations , as well as 4 Bombardier Dash 8 Q-400s for short-haul routes. [8] From 1999 to 2007, the Hungarian State Privatization Company ÁPV Plc. ( Állami Privatizációs és Vagyonkezelő Rt. ) owned 99.5% of Malév shares. The other 0.5% were in the hands of small shareholders. ÁPV Plc.

repeatedly tried to privatise Malév, finally selling it to AirBridge Zrt . 2007-2011: In private hands[ edit ] AirBridge acquired 99.9% of the airline in February 2007. It had 1,785 staff members, as of 31 December 2007. [9] Despite Czech Airlines ' offer to sponsor Malév as an associate member of the SkyTeam alliance, and MALÉV's codeshare agreements with several SkyTeam carriers, Malév joined Oneworld on 29 March 2007. On 12 July 2007 Lloyd Paxton was appointed CEO of MALÉV. Paxton replaced János Gönci, who remained on the board of directors as an adviser. Mr Paxton had been with British Airways for over 35 years and more recently with Air Astana . Mr Paxton was the first MALÉV CEO to come from the airline industry. Two months later, on 14 September 2007, Lloyd Paxton resigned as CEO of MALÉV, replaced by Péter Leonov.

[10] In January 2009, Ballo Anatoly Borisovich became the chairman. [11] On 18 March 2009 the Russian state-owned Vneshekonombank took a minority stake of 49% in AirBridge Zrt which held the shares of the struggling airline. The majority, 51%, remained in Hungarian ownership. The managing control would be taken by Russia's Aeroflot - Russian Airlines [ citation needed ]. Martin Gauss , former CEO of DBA and Cirrus Airlines as well as a Boeing 737 pilot was elected as CEO on 15 April 2009. [12] During the management of Martin Gauss, MALÉV reached a load factor above industry average among "traditional" airlines, comparable of that of low cost airlines. One of the reasons of the departure of Martin Gauss as CEO of MALÉV was the benefit ceiling established by the newly elected government, led by Orban Viktor, in 2010, where a ceiling of €8000 gross salary (approx €5000 net) was set for all managers, governing state owned companies.

The airline was renationalised in February 2010, with Hungarian Government state holding company MNV acquiring a 95 per cent stake in the airline. The remaining 5 per cent remained with AirBridge. In December 2010, the European Commission began an investigation into illegal government subsidies of Malév. [13] 2012: Financial collapse and cessation of operations[ edit ] On 9 January 2012, the European Union considered the state aid received by MALÉV illegal and ordered Hungary to recover it from the company. The European Commission ordered MALÉV to repay various forms of state aid received from 2007 to 2010, totalling 38 billion forints (€130 m; $171 m), a sum equal to its entire 2010 revenue. [14] [15] At the end of January 2012, MALÉV announced that it could no longer fund its own operations, and requested more subsidies from the Hungarian government.

[16] After having two planes seized at foreign airports by creditors, MALÉV immediately ceased all flight activity on 3 February 2012, after 66 years of continuous operation. The airline's total debts were 60 billion forints (US$270.5 million) at the time of shutdown. [17] The shutdown occurred at 6 AM Western European Time on 3 February 2012. [18] On 14 February 2012, the Metropolitan Court of Budapest declared MALÉV Ltd. insolvent. Hitelintézeti Felszámoló Nonprofit Kft. (Credit Institutional Liquidator Nonprofit Ltd.) received the appointment as the liquidator of MALÉV Ltd. [19] Corporate affairs[ edit ] Before its closure, the airline had 2,600 employees and almost half of all of the air traffic at Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport . [14] In 2011 about 40% of the revenues at Budapest airport originated from Malév operations, [20] [21] and during that year the airline served 3.2 million passengers.

[22] Head office[ edit ] Malév's head office at Lurdy House MALÉV's head office was located inside the Lurdy House (Lurdy Ház) in Budapest., [23] [24] an office and shopping complex that opened in 1998. [25] Previously the airline head office was located elsewhere in Budapest. In the 1960s and 1970s it was in V. Vörösmarty-tér 5, [26] [27] and in the 1990s it was in Roosevelt tér 2. [28] [29] The airline signed a lease agreement in the spring of 2011 with Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport agreeing to relocate its headquarters to three office buildings between Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 in the airport by the summer of 2012, [30] but these plans were cancelled due to the shutdown. [31] Ownership[ edit ] The airline was privatised in the 1990s. [32] In December 1993, ÁPV Plc.

sold 40,316 "A" series shares to the airline's employees. In 1998 ÁPV Plc. held 64.089% of the company (4,929,954 shares), Alitalia-Linee Aeree Italiane held 30% (2,307,693 shares), Simest held 5% (384,615 shares), private entities held .333% (25,577 shares), and several local governments held the rest of the company. Local governments with stakes in Malév were Agárd , Balatonlelle , Budapest , Debrecen , Budapest District 5 , and Budapest District 18 . [33] In 2007 the Russian brothers Alexander and Boris Abramovich acquired 49% of AirBridge Zrt as part of a privatisation program of the Hungarian government. After the AiRUnion alliance of the Abramovich brothers went bankrupt in 2009, Vnesheconombank took over the Abramovich stake.

[34] The government of Hungary re-nationalized the airline on 26 February 2010, after Malev experienced changes in ownership and financial difficulties. The government held 95% of the airline while AirBridge Zrt held 5%. [35] AirBridge Zrt was 51% owned by Kálmán Kiss and Magdolna Költő, two Hungarian individuals, and 49% owned by Boris Abramovich. Prior to 26 February 2010, AirBridge Zrt held 99.95% of Malév and minor shareholders held .05%. [36] Original courtesy of Wikipedia: év_Hungarian_Airlines — Please support Wikipedia. This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia . A portion of the proceeds from advertising on Digplanet goes to supporting Wikipedia. We're sorry, but there's no news about "Malév Hungarian Airlines" right now. Limit to books that you can completely read online Include partial books (book previews) Oops, we seem to be having trouble contacting Twitter Support Wikipedia A portion of the proceeds from advertising on Digplanet goes to supporting Wikipedia. Please add your support for Wikipedia!

Searchlight Group Digplanet also receives support from Searchlight Group. Visit Searchlight Copyright © 2009-2016 Digparty. All rights reserved. MALEV Hungarian Airlines | World Airline News MALEV Hungarian Airlines (Budapest) after almost 66 years of flying will not be taking off today with passengers. The airline shut down at 6 a.m. (0600) this morning as it ran out of money. The airline issued the following statement: “Based on the Board of Directors’ decision Hungary’s National Airline ceased its operation to minimize its losses. According to this statement, after nearly 66 years of continuous operation, Malév aircrafts will not depart from 6 am February 3, 2012. Unfortunately, the event occurred which we had a greatest fear of and we wanted to avoid with might and main. Although, until the latter days there were prospects to continue operation and the trust of our passengers is unbroken, our partners lost their trust due to the information published in the last days and they started to ask for payment of their services in advance. This speeded up the cash outflow and the situation of the airline became untenable.

It is also known that the owner, despite the best intentions, is unable to provide additional financial resources to operate after the EU decision. Considering all these the Board decided to order the cease of operation of the Hungary’s National Airline. We apologize to all of our passengers.” – announced CEO Loránt Limburger. The Call Centre informs the Airline’s passengers about the way how they can get to their destinations and the possibilities of compensation. Malév Call Centre available at: phone from Hungary: +36 40 21 21 21 phone from abroad: +36 1 802 11 11 e-mail: malev@malev.com According to the government regulation which entered into force on January 31, 2012, assistance can be provided to those passengers who purchased their valid tickets before Malév cease and whose travel dates are on the suspension day or on the following three calendar days. In addition, to those who already travelled to their destination on the suspension day or before and posses valid return tickets on Malév flights on a date not later than February 29, 2012.

Those who are entitled are going to have assistance from Malév by rerouting their tickets to other flights or other modes of transportation.” MALEV Slide Show: CLICK HERE Top Copyright Photo: Gabor Hajdufi. Please click on the photo for additional background information. Middle Copyright Photo: Christian Volpati. Please click on the photo for information on this historic photo. Bottom Copyright Photo: Viktor Laszio. The crew of Boeing 767-306 ER HA-LHC (msn 28884) performed a special salute to Hungary on St. Stephan’s Day on August 20, 2007 by performing this unique low altitude flight over the Danube River over Buda and Pest. Video of the low fly-by at Budapest: Route Map: The Budapest market will now be underserved. Who will move in to fill this void? Please click on the map to enlarge. Share this: MALEV Hungarian Airlines Boeing 737-7Q8 HA-LOP (msn 29354) (Budapest Winter Invasion) FRA (Bernhard Ross) , originally uploaded by Airliners Gallery .

MALEV Hungarian Airlines (Budapest) is out of money and has appealed to the government of Hungary for support. However due to recent European Commission rulings, state aid is very limited and this could be the end of the state carrier. The Chairman of the Board, Dr. János Berényi, has requested the airline management to draw up a liquidation plan. The airline has issued the following statement: “During the January 30 meeting of the Board of Directors, Chief Executive Officer of Malév Lóránt Limburger informed the Board that despite the continually improving commercial results the financing of activities had become unviable and was unresolved from the end of January. At the same time, talks with ILFC on Friday had proved successful after agreement was reached that the American leasing corporation would continue to make the aircraft available for continuous operations. In the interest of ensuring continuous operations, Chairman of the Board of Directors Dr. János Berényi requested Malév management to draw up – by the end of the week – a liquidity plan for the immediate future.

After discussing the Malév report the Board of Directors approached the owners with a request to do everything possible to resolve the situation, even though the Board recognized that due to the EU Commission ruling reached in January concluding that financing provided between 2007 and 2010 was unlawful state support, which further burdens the company’s heritage, the room for manoeuvre of the government is extremely limited.” Meanwhile the government cabinet has declared the flag carrier to be a company of “strategic importance”, meaning that creditors cannot start the liquidation process. Copyright Photo: Bernhard Ross. MALEV Slide Show: CLICK HERE Share this: Vueling Airlines (vueling.com) Airbus A320-214 EC-KDG (msn 3095) (2011 MTV logojet-Fly Me I’m Famous!-Cathy and David Guetta) AMS (Ton Jochems) , originally uploaded by Airliners Gallery . Vueling Airlines (Barcelona) is interested in acquiring MALEV Hungarian Airlines (Budapest) according to a report by business weekly Figyelo. According to the article, Vueling has concluded negotiations with the National Development Ministry.

A business plan will be presented to the Vueling board of directors next month. Read the full report by the BBJ: CLICK HERE Copyright Photo: Ton Jochems. Please click on the photo for additional information. MALEV Slide Show: CLICK HERE Share this: Malev is ordered by the EC to repay illegal government loans Malev Hungarian Airlines (Budapest) is facing a new financial crisis. Today the European Commission (EC) of the European Union (EU) ruled the 2007-2010 government loans were illegal and must be repaid. The Hungarian government is now scrambling to save the national carrier and will discuss the issue on January 16. The airline has issued the following statement: “The EU decision, which qualifies Hungarian state aid given to the airline between 2007-2010 as contrary to EU regulations, does not mean that Malév faces an immediate payment liability. The EU ruling does not affect the daily functioning of Malév, its flights continue to operate according to schedule, the company continues to pay its suppliers in compliance with contractual conditions and it provides normal services to its partners. The resources necessary for this have been supplied by the company’s owner.

Malév continues to carry its customers on scheduled flights as normal. The Hungarian government has informed Malév management and the general public that it remains committed to maintaining the national carrier. Accordingly, Malév management and all staff members are carrying out their work as usual, and they are working on sustaining into 2012 the improvements in results recorded in the past few months. Malév has forecast significantly improved operational results in 2012, justification for which is based on the financial results posted in the last quarter of 2011. The airline is showing outstanding performance indicators even when compared with its competitors: it achieved a load factor of 78% in the final month of last year, and in Q4 2011 it boosted revenue by HUF 7 billion compared with the same period of 2010. Dr. János Berényi Malév RetroProp , originally uploaded by Ati977 . MALEV Hungarian Airlines (Budapest) has painted its Bombardier DHC-8-402 (Q400) HA-LQD (msn 4063) in the 1957 livery.

The flag carrier was founded on March 29, 1946, when the Hungarian-Soviet Civil Air Transport Joint Stock Company (Magyar-Szovjet Légiforgalmi Rt. also known as Maszovlet) was formed. The initial fleet consisted of 21-seat Li-2 passenger aircraft (the Soviet-licensed DC-3) and 3-seat Po-2 for mail delivery. In 1950, MALEV’s operating base moved from Budaörs to the newly opened airport at Ferihegy, where it has remained. On November 25, 1956, Hungary acquired all the Soviet shares of Maszovlet and the state airline was born. Copyright Photo: Ati977. Hungary's national airline ceases operations | Fox News Hungary's national airline ceases operations Published February 03, 2012 Facebook 0 Twitter 0 livefyre Email Print Feb. 2, 2012: Stranded passengers wait for information at terminal 2 of Liszt Ferenc International Airport Budapest, Hungary, after Hungarian airline Malev stopped all its services and grounded all flights after its financial situation became unsustainable.

(AP) BUDAPEST, Hungary – Hungary's national carrier ceased operations, grounded all its flights and stranded more than 7,000 passengers Friday, blaming what it called an "unsustainable" financial situation. Malev, which had been selling tickets as late as Thursday, has debts of around $270 million and has been unable to find new investors. The state-owned airline, which was established the year after the end of World War II , stopped all its flights at 6 a.m. on Friday. Malev is a member of the Oneworld airline alliance that also includes American Airlines and British Airways. Managing Director Lorant Limburger said that in the past few days its partners suddenly lost trust in Malev and began demanding advance payments for their services. "This accelerated the cash outflow to such an extent that by today the airline's situation has become unsustainable," Limburger said in a statement announcing the shutdown. "We apologize to all our passengers." Earlier this week, Malev began operating under what amounted to bankruptcy protection, and a receiver was appointed by the government to oversee the airline.

Company officials said the stoppage immediately affected some 7,200 passengers -- 3,500 in Hungary and over 3,700 abroad -- who had been expecting to board Malev flights on Friday. Malev said it has contacted other airlines in search of help for the stranded travelers. Malev's plight reflects difficulties being faced by several other European airlines in light of the debt crisis and a likely return to recession in the eurozone. A spokesman for the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which represents some 240 major airlines, including Malev, is predicting a net loss for European carriers of $600 million this year, compared with an expected global net profit for airlines of $3.5 billion. "There is a more pessimistic forecast if the eurozone crisis were to become a wider banking crisis," Chris Goater told The Associated Press. A week ago, Spanish airline Spanair ceased operation because of lack of funds, canceling 220 flights and leaving 22,000 passengers stranded. Spanair, whose hub was Barcelona airport, employed around 2,000 people and used the services of about 1,200 ground staff.

And Air Berlin, Germany's largest airline after Lufthansa, said in December that Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways would become its biggest shareholder through an issue of new shares worth nearly $96 million. Air Berlin has been suffering losses blamed on high fuel prices, a new German aviation tax and sagging demand for travel to northern Africa . Cirrus Airlines, a much smaller German carrier, filed for bankruptcy protection at the end of January. Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on state radio that two Malev planes were still abroad -- one in Tel Aviv, Israel , and one in Ireland . Those planes were not allowed to take off because of the airline's accumulated debts, Orban said. Orban added that Malev faced the risk of having more of its 22 leased planes seized by creditors if it were to continue operations. Malev said it would seek to quickly return its airplanes to the leasing company. Last month, the European Union ordered Malev to repay nearly $400 million in illegal state subsidies received between 2007 and 2010. In 2010, Malev's losses reached $110 million. "It is a painful thing.

We tried to keep Malev on track as long as we could, but this is as far as we could go," Orban said, adding that he is still hopeful that new investors can be found, despite Europe's ongoing debt crisis. "I believe a restart is not impossible." Malev was founded in 1946 and has 2,600 employees, many of whom will be laid off soon, the company said without providing precise figures. After several failed privatization efforts over the past 20 years, the state now owns 95 percent of the company. A deal to sell a stake in Malev to China's Hainan Airlines fell through last year. Hungary is also home to a budget airline, Wizz Air. Advertisement Hungary’s Malev Airline Halts Flights - The New York Times The New York Times Global Business |Hungarian National Airline Halts Flights Search Continue reading the main story Photo Because of unpaid debts, some of Malev's planes were not allowed to take off on Friday, causing the airline to halt its entire fleet and stranding thousands of passengers like these in Budapest.

Credit Attila Kisbenedek/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images PARIS — The Hungarian national airline, Malev, halted all flights Friday, stranding thousands of passengers after creditors started seizing its planes outside the country over unpaid debts, and becoming the second state-owned airline in a week to succumb to Europe’s economic woes. The airline, which was re-nationalized two years ago after a failed privatization, had been losing money for years, while its debt had ballooned to 60 billion forints, or $271 million. On Thursday, a court in Budapest placed Malev under the control of a bankruptcy trustee, saying the airline could only make payments that were essential to continue offering service. The government, which is itself seeking help from the European Union and the International Monetary fund to handle its own heavy debt load, had hoped the court move would stave off the claims of creditors while Malev, a member of the Oneworld airline alliance, drew up a restructuring plan. But with the airline’s future in doubt, creditors at airports in Ireland and Israel refused to allow Malev aircraft to take off, necessitating the decision to ground the airline’s flights.

In recent days, a number of suppliers and service providers had begun to demand payments in advance, draining the airline’s cash reserves to levels it said were “unsustainable.” Continue reading the main story “What we fretted about the most and what we’ve done the most to avert has come to pass,” Lorant Limburger, Malev’s chief executive, said in a statement posted on the airline’s Web site. “We apologize to all of our passengers.” Advertisement Continue reading the main story Malev’s situation had been more tenuous since the European Commission ordered it in January to repay about 100 billion forints of state aid, including loans and debt deferrals, that it had received from 2007 to 2010. The commission, which polices Europe’s competition rules, said there was no reason to believe that Malev could turn itself around. Malev and other airlines that have relied on state support to stay afloat are seeing the flow of government cash dwindle as Europe’s protracted sovereign debt crisis leads governments to cut spending. Spanair, based in Barcelona, collapsed on Jan. 27, stranding 23,000 passengers.

The Spanish airline had been kept aloft with the help of €150 million, or about $200 million, of subsidies from regional authorities in Catalonia. A consortium of investors led by the Catalonian government held a stake of nearly 86 percent in Spanair, while SAS, the Scandinavian carrier, held 10.9 percent. Such carriers, which turned to governments after failing to drum up support from private-sector investors, are likely to find access to new funds difficult in the current environment, analysts said. But Europe’s economic downturn, combined with high fuel prices and rising airport taxes and fees, has been threatening the viability of smaller, privately owned airlines as well. Czech Connect Airlines, based in Brno, ceased operations last month, as did the Italian carrier Air Alps and Cirrus Airlines of Germany. CargoItalia, a freight operator based in Milan, wound up its business last month. Please verify you're not a robot by clicking the box. Invalid email address. Please re-enter. You must select a newsletter to subscribe to.

Sign Up Privacy Policy “The classic way that airlines go bankrupt is they run out of cash,” especially in the low season from January to April, said Paul Sheridan, global head of risk at Ascend, an aviation consulting firm in London. “There will be more airlines like Malev facing a squeeze on revenue and profit generation in 2012,” Mr. Sheridan said. “They will also be facing lack of access to finance and the rising cost of finance.” Malev’s grounding was likely to have affected 5,000 to 6,000 passengers Friday. The airline said that it would arrange alternate flights for passengers with confirmed bookings for the next three days, provided those tickets were purchased before the groundings Friday. Advertisement Continue reading the main story At Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport near Paris, most of the confusion had been cleared up by late Friday afternoon, as Air France, a code-sharing partner, was working to accommodate stranded Malev passengers there. “I really trusted Malev,” said Eszter Vegh, 26, a medical student from Szeged, Hungary, who had been in France for training and was still waiting to hear whether she would be able to make it home Friday night.

“I’m very disappointed.” “What I really liked about Malev was that the price you saw on the page was the price you pay,” Ms. Vegh said, “unlike so-called cheap airlines where you ended up paying 50 percent more by the time you’ve added in baggage fees and stuff.” Malev’s market share has stalled in recent years, faced with growing competition on its European routes, particularly from low-cost carriers. The airline carried roughly three million passengers in 2011 and 2010, down from 3.3 million in 2009. The Budapest-based budget airline Wizz Air, meanwhile, saw its Hungarian traffic climb 13 percent last year, to 1.4 million passengers. EasyJet, which is based in London, had traffic on its Hungarian routes rise 10 percent in the year to Sept. 30, to 556,000. Analysts predicted that rival airlines would quickly move in fill the void left by Malev’s demise.

Ryanair, the largest low-cost carrier in Europe, which had stopped its Hungary services two years ago, said Friday that it would start operating 31 routes from Budapest in April, in the hope of capturing two million passengers a year. Wizz Air has announced plans to invest 25 billion forints to expand its Budapest operation this year and to nearly double the number of its weekly flights. Wizz Air said it expected its passenger numbers to reach two million this year, a jump of more than 40 percent from 2011. Ellen Baker contributed reporting. A version of this article appears in print on February 4, 2012, on Page B3 of the New York edition with the headline: Hungary’s Malev Airlines Grounds Flights After Creditors Seize Its Planes. Order Reprints | Today's Paper | Subscribe Hungarian airline Malev collapses - BBC News BBC News Image caption Malev is part of the Oneworld airline alliance, which also includes British Airways The Hungarian national airline Malev has folded after its financial situation became unsustainable. "At 0500 GMT... after 66 years of almost continuous operation Malev will no longer take off," it said.

It came after the European Commission ordered Malev to repay various forms of state aid received from 2007 to 2010. The sums involved amounted to 38 billion forints (130m euros; $171m; £108m), a sum equal to its entire 2010 revenue. "Despite its best interests the owner can no longer provide financial resources for the operation of the airline in the wake of the condemning decision of the European Commission," an airline statement said. The European Consumer Organisation, which "defends the interests of all Europe's consumers", said the news came after Spanair's collapse in the very same week. "This development is yet more incontrovertible proof that the current update of European legislation on air travel must incorporate a mandatory guarantee against airline bankruptcies," it said. 'Inherited skeletons' The carrier employs 2,600 people and is responsible for close to half of all air traffic at Budapest Liszt Ferenc airport. Part of the Oneworld airline alliance, which also includes American Airlines and British Airways, Malev has a leased fleet of 22 passenger aircraft.

In 2010 it posted a loss of 24.6bn forints, although an improved 2011 figure had been predicted. Chief executive Lorant Limburger said the immediate reason for the collapse was the demand for upfront payments by its suppliers. Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on state radio that two Malev planes were still overseas, one in Tel Aviv, the other in the Irish Republic. The premier said those planes were not allowed to take off because of Malev's debts. He told radio station MR1-Kossuth that Malev may possibly be relaunched "if we manage to get rid of the inherited skeletons". On Thursday, Hungary's government appointed a receiver to the airline to try to protect it from creditors' claims. Hungarian newswire MTI had said that 64 Malev flights were scheduled to fly from Budapest on Friday. Another Hit for Europe as Hungary's National Airline Collapses - YouTube Another Hit for Europe as Hungary's National Airline Collapses Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. The interactive transcript could not be loaded. Loading... Rating is available when the video has been rented.

This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Uploaded on Feb 3, 2012 Hungary's national airline Malev has halted operations, just days after the collapse of Spain's budget airline Spainair. The blow comes as the European Commission ordered the carrier to repay financial loans totaling $171 million dollars.The collapse has now left many people and aircrafts stranded overseas. The demise of Melev will likely cost 2,600 people their jobs, not to mention interfere with air travel as the airline catered for at least half of all travel in and out of Budapest."They gave us this certificate that is supposed to refund the money but we don't know because this girl don't know exactly what's going to happen either. I managed to find another travel by Zurich with Swiss Air but I don't know if all the people will be able to fly with 450 euros."The concept of rebuilding is not impossible affirmed a representative of the airline, but for now, many wait stranded, and the Eurozone only continues to show signs of a deepening recession.

Category MALEV Hungarian Airlines | World Airline News MALEV Hungarian Airlines (Budapest) after almost 66 years of flying will not be taking off today with passengers. The airline shut down at 6 a.m. (0600) this morning as it ran out of money. The airline issued the following statement: “Based on the Board of Directors’ decision Hungary’s National Airline ceased its operation to minimize its losses. According to this statement, after nearly 66 years of continuous operation, Malév aircrafts will not depart from 6 am February 3, 2012. Unfortunately, the event occurred which we had a greatest fear of and we wanted to avoid with might and main. Although, until the latter days there were prospects to continue operation and the trust of our passengers is unbroken, our partners lost their trust due to the information published in the last days and they started to ask for payment of their services in advance. This speeded up the cash outflow and the situation of the airline became untenable. It is also known that the owner, despite the best intentions, is unable to provide additional financial resources to operate after the EU decision.

Considering all these the Board decided to order the cease of operation of the Hungary’s National Airline. We apologize to all of our passengers.” – announced CEO Loránt Limburger. The Call Centre informs the Airline’s passengers about the way how they can get to their destinations and the possibilities of compensation. Malév Call Centre available at: phone from Hungary: +36 40 21 21 21 phone from abroad: +36 1 802 11 11 e-mail: malev@malev.com According to the government regulation which entered into force on January 31, 2012, assistance can be provided to those passengers who purchased their valid tickets before Malév cease and whose travel dates are on the suspension day or on the following three calendar days. In addition, to those who already travelled to their destination on the suspension day or before and posses valid return tickets on Malév flights on a date not later than February 29, 2012. Those who are entitled are going to have assistance from Malév by rerouting their tickets to other flights or other modes of transportation.” MALEV Slide Show: CLICK HERE Top Copyright Photo: Gabor Hajdufi.

Please click on the photo for additional background information. Middle Copyright Photo: Christian Volpati. Please click on the photo for information on this historic photo. Bottom Copyright Photo: Viktor Laszio. The crew of Boeing 767-306 ER HA-LHC (msn 28884) performed a special salute to Hungary on St. Stephan’s Day on August 20, 2007 by performing this unique low altitude flight over the Danube River over Buda and Pest. Video of the low fly-by at Budapest: Route Map: The Budapest market will now be underserved. Who will move in to fill this void? Please click on the map to enlarge. Share this: MALEV Hungarian Airlines Boeing 737-7Q8 HA-LOP (msn 29354) (Budapest Winter Invasion) FRA (Bernhard Ross) , originally uploaded by Airliners Gallery . MALEV Hungarian Airlines (Budapest) is out of money and has appealed to the government of Hungary for support. However due to recent European Commission rulings, state aid is very limited and this could be the end of the state carrier. The Chairman of the Board, Dr.

János Berényi, has requested the airline management to draw up a liquidation plan. The airline has issued the following statement: “During the January 30 meeting of the Board of Directors, Chief Executive Officer of Malév Lóránt Limburger informed the Board that despite the continually improving commercial results the financing of activities had become unviable and was unresolved from the end of January. At the same time, talks with ILFC on Friday had proved successful after agreement was reached that the American leasing corporation would continue to make the aircraft available for continuous operations. In the interest of ensuring continuous operations, Chairman of the Board of Directors Dr. János Berényi requested Malév management to draw up – by the end of the week – a liquidity plan for the immediate future.

After discussing the Malév report the Board of Directors approached the owners with a request to do everything possible to resolve the situation, even though the Board recognized that due to the EU Commission ruling reached in January concluding that financing provided between 2007 and 2010 was unlawful state support, which further burdens the company’s heritage, the room for manoeuvre of the government is extremely limited.” Meanwhile the government cabinet has declared the flag carrier to be a company of “strategic importance”, meaning that creditors cannot start the liquidation process. Copyright Photo: Bernhard Ross. MALEV Slide Show: CLICK HERE Share this: Vueling Airlines (vueling.com) Airbus A320-214 EC-KDG (msn 3095) (2011 MTV logojet-Fly Me I’m Famous!-Cathy and David Guetta) AMS (Ton Jochems) , originally uploaded by Airliners Gallery . Vueling Airlines (Barcelona) is interested in acquiring MALEV Hungarian Airlines (Budapest) according to a report by business weekly Figyelo. According to the article, Vueling has concluded negotiations with the National Development Ministry.

A business plan will be presented to the Vueling board of directors next month. Read the full report by the BBJ: CLICK HERE Copyright Photo: Ton Jochems. Please click on the photo for additional information. MALEV Slide Show: CLICK HERE Share this: Malev is ordered by the EC to repay illegal government loans Malev Hungarian Airlines (Budapest) is facing a new financial crisis. Today the European Commission (EC) of the European Union (EU) ruled the 2007-2010 government loans were illegal and must be repaid. The Hungarian government is now scrambling to save the national carrier and will discuss the issue on January 16. The airline has issued the following statement: “The EU decision, which qualifies Hungarian state aid given to the airline between 2007-2010 as contrary to EU regulations, does not mean that Malév faces an immediate payment liability. The EU ruling does not affect the daily functioning of Malév, its flights continue to operate according to schedule, the company continues to pay its suppliers in compliance with contractual conditions and it provides normal services to its partners. The resources necessary for this have been supplied by the company’s owner.

Malév continues to carry its customers on scheduled flights as normal. The Hungarian government has informed Malév management and the general public that it remains committed to maintaining the national carrier. Accordingly, Malév management and all staff members are carrying out their work as usual, and they are working on sustaining into 2012 the improvements in results recorded in the past few months. Malév has forecast significantly improved operational results in 2012, justification for which is based on the financial results posted in the last quarter of 2011. The airline is showing outstanding performance indicators even when compared with its competitors: it achieved a load factor of 78% in the final month of last year, and in Q4 2011 it boosted revenue by HUF 7 billion compared with the same period of 2010. Dr. János Berényi Malév RetroProp , originally uploaded by Ati977 . MALEV Hungarian Airlines (Budapest) has painted its Bombardier DHC-8-402 (Q400) HA-LQD (msn 4063) in the 1957 livery.

The flag carrier was founded on March 29, 1946, when the Hungarian-Soviet Civil Air Transport Joint Stock Company (Magyar-Szovjet Légiforgalmi Rt. also known as Maszovlet) was formed. The initial fleet consisted of 21-seat Li-2 passenger aircraft (the Soviet-licensed DC-3) and 3-seat Po-2 for mail delivery. In 1950, MALEV’s operating base moved from Budaörs to the newly opened airport at Ferihegy, where it has remained. On November 25, 1956, Hungary acquired all the Soviet shares of Maszovlet and the state airline was born. Copyright Photo: Ati977. malev News - Emerging Europe Real Time - WSJ Emerging Europe Real Time Showing 1 – 4 of 4 Business Turkey About Emerging Europe Real Time Emerging Europe Real Time provides sharp analysis and insight into what’s making news in Central and Eastern Europe. Drawing on the expertise of our reporters in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Russia and Turkey, the site provides an inside track on economics, politics and business in this emerging part of the European continent.

Check out the main contributors to the blog and their bios here.

Question: Malev was the national airline of which European country from 1946 to 2012?
Answer: Hungary